Chapter 44 Rescue

In her past life, struggling to survive in the Dawn Base until her death, she had never heard of anyone possessing dual superpowers! It seems that the abilities of superpowered individuals are fixed from the moment they awaken; what increases is only the level and intensity of that superpower.

It's unheard of for someone like her to awaken a mental ability on top of already possessing water-based abilities!

"Why me?" Ruan Ning fell into deep thought. She recalled all the differences since her rebirth—pre-binding to the jade bracelet space, using the spiritual spring water to continuously strengthen her body and accelerate the recovery of her supernatural abilities, and even the speed at which her supernatural abilities upgraded far exceeded that of ordinary people...

Spiritual Spring Water!

A clear thought flashed through her mind like lightning! Yes, it must be this mysterious and unpredictable spiritual spring that exists alongside the space that transformed her body!

It not only restores physical strength, heals injuries, and accelerates energy recovery, but more profoundly, it seems to subtly expand her potential limit and enhance her body and mind's tolerance and adaptability to foreign energies!

This speculation made her heart race. If it were true, what would that mean?

This means she might not be limited to water and mental abilities! As long as she can find and successfully absorb high-level zombie crystal cores corresponding to other attributes, and her body can withstand the impact and fusion of different attribute energies under the continuous modification of the spiritual spring water, she could theoretically awaken a third, or even more, attribute abilities!

This idea was so astonishing, even horrifying. Multi-elemental ability users—in my previous life, this was a concept that existed only in fantasy and rumors!

But the reality before her eyes—the clear mental perception in her mind—was telling her unequivocally that it was not impossible!

“Spiritual Spring Water… what is your origin?” Ruan Ning walked to the gushing spring, gazing at the crystal-clear water brimming with vitality, her heart filled with awe and curiosity.

The jade bracelet left by her mother was far more mysterious and powerful than she had imagined.

This is undoubtedly a path full of temptation, but it is also bound to be accompanied by huge risks.

The risks lie in whether energies of different properties will clash within the body, whether the absorption process will become more dangerous, and whether the physical and mental burden will increase exponentially. If things get out of control, the consequences could be unimaginable.

The opportunity lies in the fact that, if successful, she will become an unprecedented multi-elemental ability user! Possessing multiple abilities, she will have unparalleled adaptability and advantages when dealing with various complex environments and enemies.

Her path to revenge and her means of survival will be greatly enhanced!

Ruan Ning's eyes gradually transformed from initial shock into a light of intense longing and unwavering determination.

"Risk and opportunity go hand in hand... but it's worth a try!" She clenched her fist. In the apocalypse, power is everything. For revenge, for survival, for control of her own destiny, she was willing to take the risk!

Of course, she wouldn't act blindly. The next steps required more meticulous planning:

Prioritize raising your water-based abilities to the peak of level two or even higher, while simultaneously mastering the basic applications of mental abilities, such as mental detection, mental impact, and mental protection, to ensure that you can use both abilities flexibly.

Consciously seek out and hunt high-level zombies with special abilities, such as strength, speed, defense, and even rare nature types like fire, earth, wind, and lightning, and collect their crystal cores.

Her dual-elemental or even multi-elemental abilities will be her most important trump card, and she must not reveal even a trace of them, otherwise it will inevitably attract endless trouble and covetousness.

This unexpected discovery opened a door to greater power for Ruan Ning, but it also filled her future path with more unknowns and challenges. Yet, she was fearless, filled instead with anticipation. With the help of the spiritual spring water and the reborn prophet, she would forge a unique path to becoming a powerful figure!

She looked at her palm, her mind stirred, and a stream of water flowed around her fingertips. At the same time, she clearly "saw" the traces of energy remaining on the streets of the town outside the space.

Water and spirit, two forces, achieved a delicate balance and coexistence within her.

"This is just the beginning," Ruan Ning murmured to herself, a burning desire to grow stronger blazing in her eyes.

She longed to know where her limits truly lay.

Over the next few days, Ruan Ning spent her time clearing out zombies in town and improving herself. In addition to her supernatural abilities, she also focused on improving her physical strength and martial arts skills.

The growth of superpowers depends not only on personal cultivation and accumulation, but also on extensive combat experience. If one relies solely on crystal cores for improvement, and one's own abilities cannot keep up, it is not impossible for a high-level superpowered individual to be defeated by a lower-level one.

After leaving the town, Ruan Ning returned to the base. In the evening, passing through a small village, Ruan Ning decided to stay overnight and leave at dawn.

She drove her SUV slowly into the village, her mental energy spreading out like an invisible spider web, instantly taking in the entire village's situation.

She "saw" energy fluctuations in a relatively intact tile-roofed house at the end of the village. There were four men and two barely perceptible vital signs—a mother and daughter.

She chose an empty house with a high-walled courtyard at the entrance of the village, drove the car directly into the yard, and bolted the heavy wooden door from the inside.

After quickly cleaning the main room, she took out bread and water from her spatial storage and sat on the threshold to eat quietly. Her gaze seemed to casually sweep across the courtyard, but in reality, her mental energy was firmly locked onto the house at the end of the village.

Inside a tiled house at the end of the village, four men sat around a campfire, discussing in hushed tones, their eyes occasionally glancing toward a corner.

In the corner, a woman in her thirties, disheveled, was tightly embracing a teenage girl. The girl's face was streaked with tears, her eyes were filled with fear and numbness, and her bare arms and neck were covered with bruises and suspicious marks.

"Brother, that girl at the village entrance is alone, driving a nice car, she must have something in her bag," a tall, thin man said, licking his lips.

The scarred man, addressed as "Big Brother," had a glint of greed and lust in his eyes: "Looks pretty young, and a superhuman... Same as always, we'll make our move tonight, quick and decisive."

Another short, stocky man chuckled and turned his gaze to the mother and daughter in the corner: "Anyway, the night is long, let's relieve these two's pent-up desires first."

The fourth silent man wiped his dagger, tacitly agreeing to his companion's plan.

Night fell completely.

Soon, from a house at the far end of the village came a woman's cries, a man's lewd laughter, and insults, interspersed with a mother's desperate pleas: "Please, spare my daughter, come at me... she's still so young..."

However, her pleas were met only with more brutal treatment and unbridled mockery. The mother tried to shield her daughter with her body, but was kicked away violently, and the girl let out a desperate scream.

All of this was clearly "heard" by Ruan Ning's mental power.

She didn't want to get involved, as similar tragedies happened every moment in the apocalypse. But the mother's desperate attempt to protect her daughter, though weak, was like a thorn, gently piercing a deliberately forgotten corner of her heart.

She recalled her past life, when she was isolated and helpless, betrayed by her closest relatives.

Ruan Ning closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and when she opened them again, her eyes were filled with a chilling killing intent.

"You're lucky, or rather... unlucky," she muttered to herself, her figure disappearing into the night like a ghost.

Instead of entering through the main gate, she used her agility and mental probing to silently circle around to the back window of the tiled house. The appalling scene inside made her eyes grow even colder.

"Bang!"

The rear window was violently smashed open by an invisible force! Splinters of wood flew everywhere!

The four men inside the house were taken aback by this sudden turn of events.

In the instant they were stunned, Ruan Ning's figure swept in like the wind!

"Mental shock!"

An invisible ripple spread out from her center. The tall, thin man and the short, stocky man who were hit first felt as if their heads had been hit by a hammer. The pain made their movements stiffen instantly, and their eyes became unfocused.

"A psychic!" The scarred man reacted the fastest, roaring as he slammed his hands into the ground—he was an earth-type ability user! Several sharp stone spikes instantly sprang up from the ground, piercing towards Ruan Ning!

The other silent man increased his speed, and in a flash, his dagger, gleaming coldly, slashed towards Ruan Ning's neck!

Ruan Ning remained expressionless, having anticipated this.

"Water Shield!" A solid water shield instantly appeared in front of him, blocking the stone spikes and daggers.

At the same time, she waved her left hand: "Water Bind!"

The remaining water on the ground and the dense moisture in the air instantly turned into a tough stream of water, which wrapped around the speed-generating ability user's feet like a rope, causing his forward momentum to suddenly stop!

"Level 2 superpower?!" Scarface exclaimed, his eyes finally showing horror. He was only at the peak of Level 1!

Ruan Ning gave them no chance to catch their breath. Dealing with the speed-type ability user, who posed the greatest threat, was the top priority. She moved swiftly, dodging the earth spikes that Scarface had launched again, and instantly closed in on the speed-type ability user who was trapped by water.

"Freeze!" The extreme cold spread along the water, instantly freezing his legs in place!

The speed-based ability user's eyes widened in terror. Before he could even beg for mercy, Ruan Ning's cleaver had already swept past with a fierce gust of wind—

*Thud!* A head flew off!

At the same time, the tall, thin man (fire element), who had barely recovered from the mental shock, condensed a fireball in his palm. Just as he was about to shoot it, Ruan Ning's mental energy condensed into a needle and pierced his consciousness fiercely!

"Ah!" The tall, thin man screamed in agony, clutching his head. The fireball exploded out of control in his palm, instantly setting him ablaze and turning him into a writhing, burning figure.

The short, stocky man (power type) roared and swung a broken table at Ruan Ning. Ruan Ning neither dodged nor evaded; the water vapor around her instantly condensed into a swirling storm of water blades!

Crack! The table was shattered to pieces, but the water blade continued its momentum, slicing fiercely into the short, stocky man's body. Blood splattered everywhere, and his massive body crashed to the ground, clearly beyond saving.

In the blink of an eye, of the four level-one ability users, three were dead and one was seriously injured (the fire-type one was still burning).

Only Scarface remained, his eyes bloodshot with rage. He frantically channeled his powers, causing the ground to tremble violently and more stone spikes to emerge, as he made a final stand.

Ruan Ning's eyes were icy as she locked onto him.

"it's over."

She combined her mental attack with her water-based abilities, and a mental water arrow imbued with her icy killing intent shot out silently at extreme speed!

Scarface only saw a flash of blue light before a small blood hole appeared between his eyebrows. His ferocious expression froze, and his body fell straight backward.

The battle lasted only a minute or two from start to finish. Inside the house, only the crackling of the burning flames and the trembling, incredulous mother and daughter embracing each other in the corner remained.

Ruan Ning walked up to them and threw down two clean pieces of clothing, some food, and medicine.

"Put these on, eat something. Leave on your own at dawn tomorrow." Her voice was still cold. After speaking, she turned around and began to skillfully search the corpses, collecting the useful supplies from the four men and the few level-one crystal cores.

She didn't look at the mother and daughter again, nor did she accept their tearful thanks. After cleaning up the obvious traces she had left behind, she disappeared silently into the night, just as she had come, and returned to the courtyard at the entrance of the village.

For her, it was simply a spontaneous act. Saving the mother and daughter might have been driven by a fleeting moment of emotion, or perhaps it was simply to clear her mind. She carried no burdens, nor did she expect anything in return.

She will still walk alone on the road to the end of the world.

But occasionally, when it's within her power and doesn't endanger herself, she doesn't mind crushing a few disgusting insects, perhaps... that can let a sliver of light shine into this dark world.